I am accustomed to having a good wine over dinner or whilst socialising with friends. I am a Christian and I have been so my entire life. I am not perfect but facts show that nobody is! I have over the years heard from Christians and Non-Christians alike that it is not Christian to drink alcohol or in my case wine. I have also heard how the word “wine” mentioned in the Bible refers to “Grape Juice” and “not alcoholic” wine. I have also seen how Christians of a “superior” faith than my own look at me with a condemning, evil eye as if I were kissing Satan himself when the topic of wine in the Bible arises. I have seen some “holy” people shy away from the “wine drinkers” at social gatherings. I do believe that I am not the only Christian in the world that has experienced this behaviour.
I speak to more non-believers about Christianity over a glass of wine than most Christians I know. (I am not referring to missions or crusades.) This is a crucial point that most churches do not understand.
It is not my intention to justify drunkenness or alcoholism as excessive intake of alcohol is clearly forbidden in Christianity however I will present a logical view and you the reader will have the opportunity to derive your own conclusions and beliefs. My references for this post are the Bible and Biblestudy.org who have put together an amazing analysis of this subject. Some points they express so perfectly that I have copied direct excerpts from their article as I could not express a point more accurately than Biblestudy.org.
WINE in English, vinum in Latin,oinos in Greek and yayin in Hebrew—have been used historically to refer to the juice of the grape, whether fermented or unfermented.
In the Bible when “alcoholic” wine is mentioned with accompanying words like “mocker”, “brawler”, “drunkenness” and “drunkard” is interpreted as FERMENTED ALCOHOLIC WINE. When these words are absent in the scriptures for e.g. “gladdens”, “cheers”, “merry” etc then it is interpreted as UNFERMENTED NON-ALCOHOLIC WINE.
But so much for what men say. Let's look instead at what the Bible says. After all, we must be careful to obey God rather than men (Acts 5:29) and to not become so caught up in the doctrines of men that we turn our backs on God (Matthew 15:8-9, Mark 7:7-9, Titus 1:14).
HERES a FACT. An important point to note, as several historians point out that during this time period there was no method to store UNFERMENTED, NON-ALCOHOLIC GRAPE JUICE nor was any storage method known! So it leads me to wonder how long could grape juice be stored and still be considered an unfermented, non-alcoholic beverage??
SO IS BIBLE WINE REALLY GRAPE JUICE?
Many churches adamantly teach that Bible Wine is unfermented grape juice. This would mean that Noah (Gen 9:21) and Lot (Gen 19:32-35) got drunk on unfermented grape juice, which would be a clear contradiction of scripture. So would the Miracle of Cana (John 2:11) which in accordance with Jewish custom states they were drinking alcoholic fermented grape juice.
The following is a very interesting point that I only became aware of while researching this post.
DID JESUS DRINK FERMENTED OR UNFERMENTED WINE AT THE LAST SUPPER?
“On Jesus' last Passover (Last Supper), which occurred in the Spring, he passed around wine for him and his disciples to drink. Since this was six to seven months after the grape harvest and since there was no way to preserve grape juice, this HAD to be fermented. (The actual phrase is "fruit of the vine," but, as pointed out by The New Westminster Dictionary of the Bible, this expression was "employed by the Jews from time immemorial for the wine partaken of on sacred occasions, as at the Passover and on the evening of the Sabbath. The Greeks also used the term as a synonym of wine which was capable of intoxication.")”
“The attitude of Jesus toward wine, like that of the entire Bible, is neutral, praising its use and finding fault in its intemperate use. Certainly the production of wine at Cana (John 2:1-11) scarcely supports any belief that Jesus or the primitive Church regarded the use of wine as sinful in itself." (Dictionary of the Bible, John L. McKenzie, S.J.,1965 ).
The Greek word used in John 2:1-11 for "wine" and in Paul's command to Timothy (1Timothy 5:23) is the term oinos (Greek: οἶνος, Strong's Concordance Number #G3631). This same word appears in Ephesians 5:18 ("be not drunk with wine") and Luke 10:34 ("and bound up his wounds, pouring in oil and wine").
Can you get drunk on grape juice? Would you pour grape juice on a wound? Of course not! You get drunk on something with an alcohol content and fermented wine would provide sufficient alcoholic content to serve as an antiseptic.
The New Testament ALWAYS refers to fermented wine. How could the Apostles be accused of being drunk on GRAPE JUICE when the miracle of languages occurred on the Day of Pentecost (Acts 2:13-15)??
"And when this sound occurred, the multitude came together, and were confused, because everyone heard them speak in his own language . . . So they were all amazed and perplexed, saying to one another, 'Whatever could this mean?'
"Others mocking said, 'THEY ARE FULL OF NEW WINE.'
"But Peter, standing up with the eleven, raised his voice and said to them, 'Men of Judea and all who dwell in Jerusalem, let this be known to you, and heed my words. FOR THESE ARE NOT DRUNK, as you suppose, since it is only the third hour of the day.' " (Acts 2:1-4, 6, 12-15, NKJV throughout unless stated)
One interesting argument for those who believe that wine in the bible is unfermented grape juice use Proverbs 20:1 as a defence, which states,
"Wine is a mocker, strong drink is a brawler, and whoever is led astray by it is not wise." (Proverbs 20:1)
Clearly there are problems attached to over-indulgence. The admonition here is that one not be deceived by wine and use it too much. This concept applies to almost anything including food and sex. The approach taken by those who attempt to use Proverbs 20:1 (above) to indicate that drinking something fermented is a sin would require a similar teaching about honey as well, it’s mentioned along a similar vein in Proverbs 25:27 (below):
"It is not good to eat much honey;" (Proverbs 25:27)
Should honey also be eliminated from a Christian's diet?
This attitude is absurd and the intent of each of the verses is expressing a problem resulting from going too far with either product.
WHAT ARE THE BIBLE’S POSITIVE REFERENCES?
The positive scriptures and commands which require fermented wine balance and bring into perspective the negative references. These include:
God made this drink possible to help man REJOICE!:
"Bless the Lord, O my soul! O Lord my God, You are very great . . . And (God makes) WINE that makes glad the heart of man, . . ." (Psalm 104:1, 15)
Wine can help the depressed and those near death to cope:
"Give STRONG DRINK to him who is perishing, and WINE to those who are bitter of heart. Let him drink and forget his poverty, and remember his misery no more." (Proverbs 31:6-7)
Apostle Paul tells Timothy to drink WINE for its health benefits:
"No longer drink only water, but use a little WINE for your stomach’s sake and your frequent infirmities." (1Timothy 5:23)
“It is interesting to note that those who espouse total abstinence conveniently make all of the positive references to wine relate to grape juice and claim that all of the negative ones display fermented wine. In every case the words are the same, but somehow they think that they may supply a different meaning on those words to suit their own goals.”
HEALTH BENEFITS
This benefit is only hinted at. Wine has curative value as well, as implied in Luke 10:34 and 1 Timothy 5:23. Dr. Salvatore P. Lucia, professor of medicine at the University of California School of Medicine, wrote,
"Wine is the most ancient dietary beverage and the most important medicinal agent in continuous use throughout the history of mankind . . . . Actually, few other substances available to man have been as widely recommended for their curative powers as have wines" (Wine as Food and Medicine; pp. 5, 58).
Dr. Henry A. Rowe, M.D., has stated that a moderate amount of wine taken with a meal improves digestion and helps build up the blood. The Pasadena Medical Society says,
"Taken intelligently and with discretion, alcohol (in wine and other drinks) can prolong life expectancy . . . . However, even temporary excess or prolonged over-drinking can lead to disaster."
BALANCE AND MODERATION IS KEY
The proper relationship between alcohol and Christians is really quite plain. It is merely a matter of moderation. As Paul told Timothy, "Drink no longer water, but use a little wine . . . ." When he wrote to the Ephesians he specified, "And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess . . . ."
He said to not get drunk, but he did not say to totally abstain from wine. What is absent is just as important as what is present. "Let your moderation be known unto all men" (Philippians 4:5).
Christians and alcohol CAN mix. Abstinence is NOT taught by the Bible, but neither is drunkenness. Moderation is the key.
For those who abstain from alcohol, that’s great for you. To those who like me enjoy a glass or two of wine, that’s great too! If you are the type of person who has no control of your flesh/body and is easily tempted, please refrain from any alcohol as it is in the best interest of society!
And to everyone out there, Christian or not, it is my aim to make people aware of certain truths, using facts, history and wherever necessary archaeological evidence, so no matter what your belief is, it should be based on truth. And only TRUTH. I also believe that the ministry of CONDEMNATION IS NOT CHRISTIAN and needs to be uprooted from the Church. The last time I checked it was not judgement day and NO MAN is our judge.
REFERENCES
Excerpts by BibleStudy.org/ Norman Rowe
Aid to Bible Understanding, Watchtower, 1971, pp. 1658-59.
Dictionary of the Bible, McKenzie, Bruce Publishing Co. 1965, pp. 928-29.
Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament, University of Chicago Press 1957, pp. 564-65.
Harper's Encyclopedia of Bible Life, Harper & Row 1978, pp. 184-85.
New Westminster Dictionary of the Bible, Westminster Press 1970, pp. 99219-1002.
Peloubet's Bible Dictionary, Zondervan 1971, pp. 737-39.
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